It’s the last thing we make time for—and the first thing we give up—when life makes demands on us.  Yet self-care is essential to our personal well-being and our spiritual evolution.  To enable new insights, and new ways of being, to unfold in our lives, we have to make time and room for them.  Here are some tips to help you get started. 

Just Say No.  Before adding any new self-care activities to your already-overbooked schedule, take out some of those time-wasters and energy-drainers (and we all have them!), to make room for the good stuff.  Start by saying no to just one thing; it’ll feel so good you’ll start looking for more.  ª Take the bus to work.  ª Cancel your lunch date with the office gossip.  ª Choose what you watch on TV, and when the program is over, immediately turn it off.  ª Set a timer for surfing the Internet.  ª Practice getting off the phone with people: “I’m really glad you called but I can’t talk.” 

Standing Date with Self.  This is a once-weekly, hour-long, solo date.  Use it to nurture your physical, emotional, mental, creative, or spiritual self.  It can be a recurring activity at the same day/time every week, or you can vary things.  You do it alone.  Write it in your date book in pen and schedule your other commitments around it.  After just a few weeks, you will be hooked.  ª Take a luxurious bath, with candles, scented oils, music, fluffy towels—the works.  ª Take a walk in your favorite park, or stroll through a museum or gallery.  ª Lay in a hammock, and maybe take a nap.  ª Listen to music.  Sing along or dance to it.  ª Drink your favorite tea while you free-associate in your journal or doodle in your sketchbook. 

Morning Check-In:  Before you make your plans for the day, sit quietly, close your eyes, take a few relaxing breaths, and ask your higher self, “What is important for me to know today?”  Pay attention to the first thing that comes into your awareness—it may be a symbol, a color, a word, a sound, a feeling, or an idea.  Wait another minute to see if any other insights come.  As you go about your day, you will likely find these same things surfacing in your physical environment in the most interesting ways.  This is synchronicity at work to help you stay connected to your true priorities. 

Copyright © 2007 by Joanne Franchina